


half past three

by 10softbot



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Dead People, Late at Night, M/M, Talking To Dead People
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2021-01-04 21:54:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,430
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21204680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/10softbot/pseuds/10softbot
Summary: Jeno finds he quite likes working the late hours at his local convenience store.





	half past three

**Author's Note:**

> had this on my mind all day, so here's a short drabble to make myself feel better over the fact i probably won't finish what i had planned for halloween on time

Jeno finds he quite likes working the late hours at his local convenience store.

There is an atmosphere shift at night when compared to daylight working hours, and while during the morning the store is always bustling with costumers, at night they rarely get any costumers at all. He doesn’t really mind it and neither does his boss– a small, old man who can’t be bothered to sit at his store for long hours when he already knows their usual regulars will show up at one point or another.

There is the lady who lives next door, who always comes in a little past ten to buy a bottle of water and a pack of cigarettes, her white chihuahua quietly tucked under her arm. There is the tired college student who comes in for instant noodles every night close to midnight, when the subway is no longer working. The father of two who lives up the hill always comes in well after two for more baby food.

And then there is Jaemin.

Though Jaemin doesn’t fit into the _regular costumer_ category, but rather in the _work colleague_ one. They have been working the same shift for the past six months and going out for the past two, and Jeno can’t even begin to express how good it feels to have someone to chat with all night when no one seems to be coming in.

The clock marks three-fifteen on the wall and Jeno sighs, sitting back on his stool behind the register. They only have forty-five minutes left until Yuta and Sicheng take over for their shifts, and with Jaemin working in the storage room there is very little he can do all on his own right now.

The phone under the counter starts ringing and Jeno rolls his eyes. With a sigh, he picks it up.

“New Days, how can I help you?” his costumer service voice sounds terrible even to his own ears. He waits, and when a response doesn’t come, he tries again. “Hello? Can I help you?”

There is silence on the other end of the line. Jeno furrows his brows, lifts the phone off his ear to look at it, as if that would be of any help.

Silence.

“Listen, man,” he sighs, mildly annoyed. “You’ve been doing this for the past two months; don’t you think it’s time to prank someone else? I’m getting bored.”

The thick silence is replaced by a heavy breathing. It only lasts a couple seconds before it’s replaced by loud static, and then the call disconnects.

With another sigh, he puts the phone back down. The same thing has been happening every single night for the past two months, and while he usually doesn’t care, this is starting to get really annoying. He mentioned it to his boss once, but the man brushed it off as some kid playing a prank on them.

Jeno sits back again. That sure is one dedicated prankster.

At half past three, the bell above the entrance door dings, announcing a new costumer. Jeno says his greetings with a short bow, immediately getting back up on his feet. The gush of cold wind that comes in when the door opens makes him shiver, and it lingers long after it has closed.

He watches as a woman walks through the aisles of the store, seemingly looking for something. Jeno notices she only does quick scans of the places she walks past, never once picking anything for herself. She walks back to the front of the store, stopping by the register.

“Hi,” Jeno greets, doing his best to smile. “Do you need help?”

She gives him a wide smile of her own, and Jeno gets a weird sense of déjà vu. “Hello, yes! Uhm,” she hesitates, hands reaching down to clutch at her flowery gown. “Is Jaemin here?”

Jeno frowns. “He’s working in the back room,” he points with his thumb towards the door on his left. “Is it urgent? I can go get him for you.”

“Oh! Well,” she looks and sounds surprised, “I came to pick him up? I’m his mom.”

“Oh,” it’s his turn to look surprised, and he quickly bows to her when he finally recognizes Jaemin’s features on her. “Mrs. Na, it’s very nice to meet you! But,” he hesitates, shifting his weight on his feet, “we don’t clock out for another half an hour, and we’re going out for dinner after work? Did he forget to tell you?”

The smile on her face twitches, but her eyes stay unmoving as she stares at him. “Ah, that’s a shame… I’ll get going then.”

“I’ll let him know you stopped by!” he calls out as she turns to leave but she pays him no mind. She is out as fast as she came in, and Jeno shivers at how cold the store suddenly feels.

The minutes seem to drag until the door dings open again, and when he looks up, he finds Yuta and Sicheng walking into the store, fingers laced as usual. A quick glance at the clock lets him know he only has three minutes of his shift left.

Jeno sighs in relief, stifling a yawn when he gets back up on his feet.

“Hey,” he greets them, cracking his back as he stretches. Sicheng waves quietly at him.

“Hey man,” Yuta greets with a smile, and Jeno watches it quickly turn into a frown. “Care to tell me what the fuck happened here?”

“Huh?” Yuta motions to the floor, and when Jeno peeks over the counter, he can see water all over the floor. He frowns. “What the–”

Jaemin comes out of the back room, already dressed and ready to go, Jeno’s coat and backpack in hand. He greets the other two after he calls for Jeno and Sicheng is the only one to greet him back.

Yuta looks from the wet floor back up at Jeno. “You gonna clean this up before you leave or…?”

Jaemin places Jeno’s backpack on the counter. “What–”

“Hey,” Sicheng tugs on Yuta’s hand, trying to get his attention. “Don’t make a fuss out of it, I’ll clean it myself.”

“That’s not–”

“Yuta,” Sicheng’s tone shifts and Jeno starts backing away. “This is final.” He turns to Jeno and Jaemin, motioning to the door with his head. “Go on you two.”

“Thanks,” Jeno mumbles before grabbing his things and dashing out of the store, Jaemin close behind.

The temperature outside isn’t nearly as cold as the inside of the store, Jeno notices as he slips his coat on. Backpack over his shoulder, Jaemin easily falls into step with him, linking their hands together. Jaemin is warm like a cup of hot chocolate and he really, really likes that about him. When he looks at Jaemin, Jaemin is giving him his best smile, the one that makes Jeno feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

He quickly pecks him on the lips. “We got another call today.”

Jaemin makes this cute _eung_ sound, clinging a bit closer to his arm. “Any luck on getting a response this time?”

“Nope,” Jeno pops the ‘p’. “Same old. The call disconnected shortly after.”

“I’m sure they’ll get bored at some point.”

“I hope so, I’m getting annoyed.”

They stop at a crosswalk, waiting for the sign to turn green. They still have a couple blocks to go before they reach the udon tent they usually go to. Jaemin rests his head on Jeno’s shoulder, visibly tired.

“Oh, by the way!” it finally downs on him. “Your mom came to pick you up today, but it was too early for us to clock out, and when I told her we were going out for dinner she just left. I told her I’d tell you she stopped by.”

The light turns green and Jeno starts walking to cross the road, only to be immediately pulled back by Jaemin, grip deathly on his hand. Jeno turns to look at him, confused.

“Jeno,” Jaemin says, slowly, a rather serious expression on his face. “Are you sure it was my mom?”

Jeno cocks his head. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure?” he scratches the back of his head. “I recognized her from the picture on your phone wallpaper and, like, you two look extremely similar.”

Jaemin’s lips pull into a thin, straight line, frown deep between his brows. Jeno shifts in place, eyes darting to the countdown on the sign.

“That’s impossible.”

“What?”

Jaemin tightens his grip on his hand, pulling him back. “Jeno.”

The light goes red again.

“My mother died three months ago.”

**Author's Note:**

> [twitter](twitter.com/10softbot)   
[curiouscat](curiouscat.me/10softbot)


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